A former minister of information, Professor Jerry Gana, has said the level of corruption under the All Progressives Congress (APC) government makes the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governments look like angels.
The former minister who noted that corruption is now a thousand times worse under the APC, added that Nigeria now has the worst misery index in Africa
Gana, a founding member of the PDP, stated this yesterday at the PDP Critical Stakeholders’ Retreat organised by the Kogi PDP Renaissance Group in Abuja.
Delivering his keynote address on the theme, “Kogi PDP: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow,” the professor said Nigerians are suffering the worst economic distress at any time in the post-independence history of the country since President Muhammadu Buhari assumed power.
He said, “The Misery Index in Nigeria is the worst in Africa. The level of indebtedness in the past few years is such that every Nigerian is now in debt. The naira is perhaps one of the most useless currencies in Africa today.
“I have never seen this level of corruption as we have today. In fact, the level of corruption makes the PDP governments look like angels because corruption is now a thousand times worse.”
Gana who also decried the level of banditry and kidnapping in the country, noted that the recent call by Governor Aminu Masari for the people of Katsina to consider arming themselves to ward off frequent attacks by bandits was indicative of how bad the situation has become.
While urging the PDP leadership to reflect on the magnitude of the situation in Katsina an APC controlled which the President hails from, the former minister said, “Governor Maisari was advocating recently that everyone in Katsina State should get a gun. Do you know where Katsina is? Do you know who comes from Katsina?”
He noted that PDP has the duty to rise to the challenge of ensuring that APC is sent packing at state levels and at the centre in 2023.
Former senate president, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, said the retreat indicated PDP’s readiness to put its house in order in Kogi and across the country.
“Kogi has witnessed change in fortune since 2015 but I am happy because today’s meeting sends a strong message to the PDP family throughout the country. We must not forget that our party, the PDP is the landlord in Kogi that was robbed of victory in the past elections. So, we must set aside our differences in the interest of the party,” he said.
Chairman of Kogi PDP Renaissance Group, Hon, David Ina Ogu, described the body as “ a Consultative initiative of concerned PDP members made up of loyal and committed party members who share mutual concerns for the party.”
He added that its core objectives are “to partner with the state executive committee of the party to build synergy that will reinvigorate the party, mobilize and sensitize the teeming grassroots support base in preparations for the task of reclaiming the state in 2023.”
Prominent party stalwarts including former governor of the state, Ibrahim Idris and chairman of the PDP in Kogi State, Engr. Sam Uhuotu, among others attended the event.